The Were-rat
by Lollipop456
Summary: When Dipper is bitten by a large rat in the woods, his body starts to go through some horrifying changes. Only his Grunkle Ford can provide the antidote. Will he do it in time? Or is Dipper going to be forced to live his life as a monster?
1. Chapter 1

Dipper and Mabel were glad to be back in Gravity Falls for another summer. Even more so because their uncles had returned from their search of anomalies and had taken ownership of The Mystery Shack again and were happy to let their niece and nephew stay with them.

Dipper was still thoroughly convinced that there was more weirdness in Gravity Falls than what the journals told. So, he mainly spent his days searching the woods and the town for the supernatural.

One morning, Dipper decided to film a patch of red flowers that seemed normal until you tried to pick them; then they would try to eat you. Mabel tagged along as the camerawoman.

"Okay, is it on?" Dipper asked.

"Good to go, bro-bro." Mabel gave a thumbs up from behind the camera.

"Great." Dipper cleared his throat and gestured towards the flowers. "Now, these are flowers."

"Daisies!" Mabel shouted.

"What?"

"They're daisies. You can't just call them "flowers." That's like calling the ocean a giant pool, or calling a reality show a bunch of hogwash, or calling-"

"Okay, I get it. So, these _daisies_ might seem ordinary; but they're actually alive and have been known to eat animals and people if they're about to be touched. I've decided to call them "canniplants."

"Daisies!" Mabel corrected.

"Fine. Cannidaisies. Now, these daisies have been in Gravity Falls-"

"Oooh. What's that?!" Mabel pointed the camera in front of her.

Dipper looked over his shoulder and saw a large, black rat with long, crooked teeth and yellow eyes.

"I wonder if we can keep it as a pet."

Mabel started to walk towards the rat but Dipper grabbed her by the shoulder. "Not so fast, Mabel. Didn't you notice this rat is almost the size of a dog? It's probably another monster."

"Oh, come on. He's probably just had too many cheese doodles. Besides, he looks so sweet."

Mabel walked up to the rat and reached out her hand to pet it. The rat snarled and opened its mouth; thinking fast, Dipper pushed Mabel out of the way and the rat bit into his arm before scurrying back into the woods.

"Oh no." Mabel picked up herself up off the ground and ran over to the injured Dipper. "Dipper, are you okay?"

Dipper grunted and held the bottom of his shirt to his bleeding arm. "It's fine. It just looks worse than it is."

"We need to get you back to the shack. Just follow Nurse Mabel."

Mabel wrapped her arm around Dipper to keep him steady as they headed back to the mystery shack. When they stepped inside, they found Grunkle Ford in the living room, reading through a book.

"Hi kids." Ford greeted. "Back from the monster hunt already?"

"Great-uncle Ford, Dipper was attacked by a large rat!" Mabel said.

"I wasn't attacked. It was just a bite." Dipper corrected.

Ford was immetidately on his feet and examined Dipper's arm. "You said that a large rat did this?"

"Yeah, that's right." Dipper said.

Ford frowned and scooped Dipper into his arms, carrying him to the kitchen. He put him down on the table and began rummaging through the cabinets.

"Where is that first aid kit?" Ford mumbled.

"It's right here." Mabel reached under the sink and pulled out the first aid kit.

Ford took the first aid kit from Mabel, and took out the bandages and the disinfectant. He held Dipper's arm under the sink and began to wash the blood off the bite. He then swabbed the entire arm with two thick layers of disinfectant and wrapped it in the bandages.

"Uh, Grunkle Ford, why didn't you just bandage the bite?" Dipper asked.

"Dipper, you have to tell me. How big was this rat?"

Dipper shrugged. "Probably as big as a small dog. Mabel was about to pet it, so I tried to stop her, that's when it bit me."

"It was that big, huh?" Ford said to himself.

"I'm sure it's nothing to worry about." Dipper said.

"Do you feel feverish?" Ford felt Dipper's forehead. "Thank goodness. Perhaps it was only a large rat, still if it wasn't..."

"Grunkle Ford, what's going on?" Dipper asked.

"N-Nothing. Tell you what, how about you go on to bed?"

"But what about dinner?" Dipper asked.

"You need your rest. We'll bring a plate to you in the attic. Now, go on."

Ford ushered the twins upstairs. Once they were out of sight, he ran back to the kitchen and grabbed the phone.

"Operator, get me the best doctor in Gravity Falls. Tell them I need them I need them at The Mystery Shack right away." Ford hung up the phone and couldn't help but notice the little droplets of blood that had been left by Dipper's bite. "I hope I'm wrong about this."


	2. Chapter 2

The Doctor arrived at the Mystery Shack shortly after Ford's phone call. Oddly enough, the man was wearing a white coat.

"Where is the patient?" The Doctor asked.

"He's up in the attic. I'll show you the way." Ford said.

Ford showed the doctor to the attic. Dipper was sitting up in bed, playing a game of chinese checkers with Mabel.

"Mabel, why don't you go downstairs and wait for Stan to come home?" Ford asked.

"Okay, Grunkle Ford." Mabel hopped off the bed and left the attic.

The Doctor took Mabel's place across from Dipper and opened up his black bag. He took out a stethoscope to check Dipper's heartbeat.

"Why are you wearing that coat? It's like a hundred degrees outside." Dipper said.

"Because it looks cool. Doctors must look cool." The Doctor said, sounding extremely serious. "Now, be quiet and breathe normally."

Dipper did as he was told and the doctor listened to his heart. He then nodded and put the stethoscope back. He then checked Dipper's eyes, ears, nose, and throat, before finally taking a look at the bite.

"Dipper, did this rat seem to be acting strangely?" The Doctor asked.

"Strange, how?"

"Rats are normally docile. Did this rat seem docile before you were bit?"

"Actually, no. He was snarling even before Mabel tried to pet him."

The Doctor nodded. "Was he foaming at the mouth?"

"I don't think so."

"Well, one can't be sure these days. " The Doctor rummaged around in his bag before pulling out a syringe. He took a gentle hold on Dipper's uninjured arm and plunged the syringe into it. "There we go. All done."

"What was that?" Dipper asked, rubbing the injection site.

"A vaccine to prevent rabies. I'll be back soon to give you the other injection." The Doctor explained.

Dipper groaned. "More needles."

"It's for your own good, Dipper. Now, I'll be right back; I just have to show the doctor out." Ford said.

The Doctor stood and left the attic with Ford. When they reached the exit to the shack, Ford took a hold of the doctor's arm before he could leave.

"Does he have a fever?" Ford asked.

"None at all. Cool as a cucumber."

"His heart sounded normal? What about his teeth? They weren't pointy, were they? Was there fur anywhere to be seen?" Ford rambled off a list of questions, each more bizzare than the last.

"Mr. Pines, Dipper is just fine. I'm not even sure that the rat was rabid. This was just a precautionary measure."

"Of course, of course." Ford said quickly.

"Is there something else I should worry about? Those were some pretty weird symptoms you just gave me."

"If there's any change, I'll call you." Ford said.

"Not a very direct answer, but I'll take it. Goodday, sir."

The doctor left and Ford returned to the attic. To his relief, Dipper was sound asleep. Ford gave a deep sigh and left his nephew alone to nap. Perhaps, he was just being paranoid. Dipper didn't have any of the symptoms.

A few hours later, Ford was working in the lab in the basement, when Mabel came running inside.

"Grunkle Ford, Grunkle Ford! You have to come now! Something's wrong with Dipper!" Mabel shouted.

Mabel took Ford's hand and the two quickly ran up to the attic. Dipper laid in bed, drenched in sweat and curled into a ball. Ford raced over to him and felt his forehead.

"He's burning up." Ford said quietly.

"Everything hurts." Dipper moaned.

"It's okay, Dipper. Grunkle Ford knows what to do."

Ford carefully unwrapped the bandage and saw just he had feared. Nearly concealed by the layer of disinfectant was a patch of grey fur. He covered the wound again and then opened Dipper's mouth, noticing that his front two teeth had becomed yellowish in color.

"Grunkle Ford, what's going on?" Mabel asked.

"Something terrible, Mabel. Something terrible." Ford said.


	3. Chapter 3

"Grunkle Ford, what is that?" Mabel asked.

Ford took a deep breath. No matter what happened, he wouldn't cause a panic. He laid his hands on Mabel's shoulders.

"It's a rash, sweetheart. Dipper's just a little bit sicker than I thought. It might be contagious, and I don't want you catching it. Why don't you go downstairs for awhile? Oh, and tell Stan to come right up when he gets home."

Mabel gave a concerned glance towards Dipper, but then she nodded and left the attic. Ford frowned as he turned his attention back to Dipper.

"This is bad, isn't it?"Dipper asked.

"Dipper..." Ford pulled a chair up to Dipper's bed and sat himself down. "I'm not really sure how to explain this to you; but the rat that bit you wasn't any ordinary rat."

"It wasn't?"

"You've heard of werewolves, right? Well, what bit you was a were- _rat._ There's not that many in Gravity Falls, and their transformations differ greatly from werewolves."

"W-What do you mean?"

"The change is permanent. Once the transformation is fully completed. Although some were-rats have been known to maintain human-like qualities. They'll walk on two legs, stay the same size they always were, and be able to form a few words together."

"Then, how come the one we saw wasn't like that?" Dipper asked.

"Unforunately, sometimes the transformation can become something similiar to rabies. The brain can become effected severely. Making them no different than any other wild animal."

Dipper stared at Ford for a moment, tears forming in his eyes. He turned on his side away from Ford.

"I'm going to become a monster?"

Ford laid a hand on Dipper's shoulder. "Don't lose hope, Dipper. I never really looked into it before now, but there may be a way to stop this."

"What if you can't?" Dipper asked quietly.

Ford didn't even want to think about not curing Dipper. The idea of his nephew becoming no different than a wild animal; it made him sick to his stomach.

Ford snapped out of his thoughts when Dipper groaned. Ford quickly reached over and took one of Dipper's hands, allowing him to squeeze it. Dipper dug his fingers into Ford's hand, his nails suddenly started to grow a little bit and became sharper. Dipper couldn't help but gasp when he saw he was drawing blood from Ford's hand.

"Grunkle Ford, I'm so-"

"It's okay, Dipper. It hardly hurts and don't worry about me getting it. The disease can only be transferred through a bite. If this helps you, then I'm glad to do this."

Dipper started to smile but it was short lived when the pains started again. He squeezed Ford's hand again, trying to breathe through the pain. There was a sudden knock on the attic door.

"If it's Mabel, tell her to go away." Dipper said.

"I'll handle it." Ford brushed back Dipper's hair from his forehead and then went to answer the door. He wasn't really surprised to see Stan standing there.

"I leave you alone to watch the kids for a few hours, and something like thi-" Dipper groaned and leaned over the bed, vomitting onto the floor. "Whoa. What's going on here?"

Stan pushed past Ford and ran over to Dipper, rubbing circles around his back. Dipper finally sat up and gave Stan a weak smile.

"Hi Grunkle Stan." Dipper said.

"Kid, this is serious. We need to take you to the hospital." Stan said quickly.

"No hospitals! They wouldn't understand."

"What are you talking about? They wouldn't understand pain and puking? That seems pretty easy to understand to me."

"I meant they wouldn't understand how to deal with what's happened to Dipper."

"What do you mean? Why won't let you me take to him to the hospital? The kid could be dying!" Stan said urgently.

Ford helped Dipper lay back down and covered with the blanket. He grabbed Stan by the arm and pulled him out of the attic, closing the door behind them.

"What's going on, Stanford?" Stan asked.

"It's hard to explain; but Dipper has been bitten by something called a were-rat. In no less than two weeks, the Dipper we know could be long gone. The transformation is already starting."

"Transformation? Wait a minute. You mean that Dipper is becoming something else?"

"A rat. A were-rat." Ford said simply.

"You're a smart guy, do something!"

"I'm going to try to make an antidote. I'm not exactly sure if I'll be able to make it in time, though."

Stan pointed his finger at his brother's chest. "Let's get one thing straight, Poindexter. If you can't stop this, then I'll find someone who can."


	4. Chapter 4

The next few days were nothing short of agonizing for Dipper. Ford and Stan often took shifts to care for him and to keep Mabel away. By the end of the week, Dipper's fingernails had grown just as long as his two front teeth, fur covered his arms, legs, and some of his face. His feet had already turned to paws, making it hard to walk. The transformation was not showing any signs of stopping; in fact, it seemed to be happening faster than anyone thought.

One afternoon, Stan brought a tray of food up to the attic for lunch. It was macaroni and cheese, Dipper's favorite food. Dipper was sound asleep, so Stan shook him gently by the shoulder.

"Hey, kiddo. Look what I got here for you." Stan whispered.

Dipper rubbed his eyes and turned towards the tray. Dipper groaned and turned on his side.

"The pains again?" Stan asked.

Dipper nodded slowly. Stan ran a hand across his forehead, his fingers lingering over his nephew's birthmark.

"How about some water and painkillers for right now?" Stan asked.

"Okay."

Stan gave an audible gasp when he finally noticed Dipper's eyes. His pupils were dialated and his eyeballs now were turning a bright yellow.

"I noticed them this morning. I was kind of hoping it was my imagination." Dipper said quietly.

"Hey, it's okay. You still look better than Ford. You've just gotta keep hanging in there, okay?"

Dipper smiled and nodded. Stan ruffled his hair and left the attic. The week was almost out and he was tired of seeing no change in Dipper. If Ford hadn't made any progress with the antidote by the time he got down to the basement, Stan was going to drive Dipper to the hospital himself.

Entering his brother's lab, Stan found an exhausted Ford going over piles of papers, constantly looking up at the bottles of chemicals that were covering his desk.

"Any luck?" Stan asked.

Ford looked over his shoulder and shook his head. Stan growled and knocked a bottle off a nearby shelf.

"Stanley, I needed that." Ford said.

"No, you didn't. I'm taking Dipper to a hospital."

"What? You can't be serious! Those doctors wouldn't have an inkling how to treat Dipper's condition." Ford argued.

"I've got news for you, Poindexter: neither do you!"

"At least I'm not treating him like a science experiment. The hospital will isolate him, doctors and scientists will just come to poke and prod him. He'd be a specimen, not a patient!"

"I'm not exactly thrilled with the idea of him being studied, Ford, but he needs some sort of help and he needs it now. "

Ford gave a defeated look. "Stanley, if I don't have an antidote in a few days, then I'll personally admit him to the hospital. Deal?"

Stan nodded and was about to leave, but he paused at the door.

"Something else on your mind?" Ford asked.

"It's Mabel. She keeps on asking why she has to sleep in that room downstairs. She wants to know why we're keeping the attic door locked."

"Stan, we promised Dipper that Mabel wouldn't see him. Not until we found a cure."

"We can't just keep lying to her."

"I've got an idea. We tell her that Dipper is contagious; the flu or something like that."

"Ford, didn't you just hear what I said? No more lies!"

"Fine, Stanley. Take her to the attic right now and let her see Dipper. Go on, do it!"

Stan clenched his fists and then slowly relaxed. He knew in his heart that Ford was right. Seeing what Dipper was becoming would only frighten Mabel and only depress Dipper. A girl terrified of her own brother and a sick boy being sadder than ever would do nobody any good.

"Maybe she needs a change of scenery. I'll call Grenda's mom, see if Mabel can sleep over." Stan mumbled.

"I'll go to the attic to check on Dipper." Ford was about to leave when Stan grabbed his shoulder.

"He's running out of time, Ford. We can't keep it up much longer."

Ford shrugged off Stan's hand and left the lab. A defeated and frusrated Stan did the only thing he could think of. He slid to the floor and started to cry.


End file.
